This scene is now becoming increasingly common on the slopes. It’s a little past 5 p.m., the lifts are shutting down, the cold is setting in, but vacationers aren’t heading back inside to warm up just yet. They gather on the base area, looking up at the sky with their smartphones in hand.
While the traditional torchlight descent by the ski instructors still has its charm, people are now gazing up at the night sky for an entirely different reason. Over the past few winters, the mountain’s nighttime postcard view has been changing. Gone are the simple fireworks; now it’s all about drone sound-and-light shows.
Throughout February and early March 2026, our teams at Allumee—a Lyon-based company—actually stepped up their activities in the Alps. From the Tournée des Neiges in Serre-Chevalier and Auron to the SKI SHOW in Les Arcs, our traveling troupes performed one show after another.
But beyond the technical feat and the audience’s cheers, why are ski resorts now turning to drone shows?
An Analysis of a Major Turning Point.
Outlining Political and Territorial Ambitions: The 2030 Horizon
Flying 300 drones in the winter sky isn’t just a simple show to cap off a day of skiing. It has become a massive marketing tool.
The example of the “Tournée des Neiges” is a prime example of this. Co-organized by the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (PACA) Region and the Regional Tourism Committee (CRT), the second edition of this traveling event set up its chalets in five resorts throughout February. On the program: snow sports simulators, tourton tastings, virtual reality, and a choir. Behind the scenes, there’s also a political stake. The goal is to build support and rally the public behind the French Alps’ bid for the 2030 Winter Olympics.
Our performances, held notably in Serre-Chevalier and Auron on February 23 and 25, respectively, were designed to bring this vision to life. The outgoing mayor of Montgenèvre, Guy Hermitte, put it bluntly: the Tour is not just a celebration; it is a “living showcase of our mountains, our culture, and our identity.” It reflects a “shared desire to put the Southern Alps on the map by 2030—and far beyond.” For Agnès Rossi, chair of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (PACA) Region’s tourism commission, the goal is clear: “to breathe new life into the Olympic spirit” that the French were able to experience during the 2024 Paris Olympics. The goal was to rekindle “the sense of community, sharing, and joy among spectators and athletes.”
What better way to capture that “Olympic spirit” than by creating 3D images of the Olympic rings or winter sports nearly 100 meters above the ground?
Drone shows have become a prime media platform for local elected officials.
Keep the skier on the snow front
While the region is looking ahead to 2030, the resorts are focused on managing day-to-day operations during the season.
Their immediate challenge? Après-ski: the key to success. As a member of the CRT Paca explains, the goal is to attract visitors “just as people are starting to stop skiing” and keep them there until “it’s time for an aperitif.”
That’s where the art of crafting a well-structured event comes into play, and the program for Les Arcs 1800 is a perfect example of this.
On February 26 and March 5, the resort hosted its iconic SKI SHOW. It’s a tried-and-true formula, but one that’s incredibly effective. Starting at 5:30 p.m. on the Vagère snowfront, the atmosphere gradually builds:
- A Showcase of the Trades: Demonstrations by snow groomers, ski patrollers, and their avalanche dogs.
- The sports show: It features every kind of snow sport (snowboarding, telemark skiing, monoskiing, skwal, and handiskiing), highlighted by the “360s” and “backflips” performed by the young athletes from the Freeski Academy.
- The Light Show: As night falls, ESF instructors take over, dressed in glow-in-the-dark suits, for a synchronized ski run, followed by the traditional torchlight descent.
And it is precisely at that moment—just when the audience might think the show is over—that the production *Allumee: Conquête des Cimes* takes the stage.
A spectacular finale with our drones featuring pyrotechnic effects that light up the Les Arcs logo. The audience’s reaction is immediate, and a thunderous round of applause erupts.
More than 250 drones take off simultaneously to transform the sky into a narrative and thematic story centered on the mountains, enhanced by scenes tailored to the resort.
Satisfied vacationers extend their stay in the heart of the resort.
The Marketing Equation: Social Media, Sustainability, and Customer Loyalty
Behind the visual spectacle, the tourism offices’ calculations are pragmatic. Investing in a drone show must meet very strict criteria regarding economic benefits and brand image.
The Virality Bonus
These days, if an event isn’t “Instagrammable,” it doesn’t exist. And drone choreographies are tailor-made for social media. The vertical formats of smartphones—whether for TikTok or Instagram Reels—are perfectly suited to these aerial displays. Every vacationer who films the show in Serre-Chevalier or Les Arcs and posts it on social media effectively becomes an ambassador for the resort. It’s a massive organic advertising campaign, generated for free by the public.
Local Tourism Worth Cherishing
Getting skiers to return year after year is an obsession. The figures provided by Agnès Rossi during the Tournée des Neiges highlight a reality that is often overlooked: “More than 50% of vacationers are from the region, 20 to 25% are from outside the region, and just under 20% are foreigners.” This local crowd, which knows the Southern Alps well, is demanding. You have to surprise them to get them to come back. A one-of-a-kind show featuring 300 drones is a compelling reason to convince Provençals to head up to the resort for a weekend.
A selection of eco-friendly activities
It’s an argument that’s rarely brought up, but one that carries a lot of weight in town hall meetings: the environment. High-altitude mountain resorts are regularly criticized for their environmental impact. Against this backdrop of tension, traditional fireworks displays are facing increasingly negative publicity. Noise pollution disturbs local wildlife, and cardboard and gunpowder residue often end up in the snow and then seep into the soil as the snow melts. Drone fleets offer the advantage of a clean spectacle: no waste, no explosions. This has become a decisive factor for municipalities.
Formats Set to Grow
The market is still in its infancy. At the CRT Paca, Valérie Mérali, deputy director for quality of life, says she aims to see events “gain momentum” by 2030. “It’s not bad so far, but we want it to grow, ” she says.
Allumee’s vision aligns with that of the resorts
We would like to emphasize that the advantage of our sound-and-light shows lies in their flexibility.
From 200 to over 2,000 drones, we design immersive experiences for any budget. We can easily incorporate multimedia elements, including lasers, fireworks, and other pyrotechnic effects.
This opens up a wide range of possibilities for ski resorts to create unique experiences that reflect their own identity.
Our goal is the same as theirs: to continue surprising the audience.
When the Mountain Rules
Operating in an alpine environment requires a healthy dose of humility. Behind the scenes, there are batteries to manage in sub-zero temperatures—and, above all, the wind. That was the case on February 17 in Montgenèvre.
Just as everything was ready for the show, strong gusts of wind unfortunately forced flight control to make the only decision possible: to cancel the takeoff. Public safety is never negotiable, and while the absence of the 300 drones left some people disappointed, it didn’t spoil the party. Bundled up warm, the vacationers turned their attention to the entertainment at the chalets and enjoyed performances by the choir Le Chœur du Sud and DJ Le Pedre. As one observer philosophically put it that evening, “The wind kept the drones grounded, but not the Olympic spirit.”
Ultimately, this weather-related cancellation serves as a reminder of a fundamental truth about the mountains: nature always has the final say. This reality only makes the successful shows—on those evenings when the sky is as smooth as oil and clear—even more precious in the eyes of the audience. These are exceptional evenings when, for a few dozen minutes, technology manages to steal the spotlight from the snow-capped peaks.
